


Riptide

by FloralPrince



Category: One Piece
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Light Angst, M/M, Mutual Pining, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-03-17 16:01:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28727772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FloralPrince/pseuds/FloralPrince
Summary: A normal day of arguing almost becomes a dreadful tragedy after an accident occurs. The realization of what has happened and what could have occurred weighs heavily on Zoro's heart and he realizes he can't ignore that he loves a certain blonde cook anymore- not after what he's done. Sanji just wants normalcy but Zoro won't let that happen.
Relationships: Roronoa Zoro/Vinsmoke Sanji
Comments: 1
Kudos: 84





	Riptide

The rays of the morning sun broke through the waves of the restless ocean.  
Its own weightless entity, the water slowly dragged that of which it engulfs farther from the light into the darkness of its seabed.  
Light refracted through the surface, piercing the eye with the beauty of an underwater sky filled with thousands of stars.  
It was peaceful for being the end.  
Yet the daydream was shattered when the water was split with an outreached hand determined to latch onto that of which the water had hoped to steal for itself.  
The light got closer until it was blinding, melting into a blue sky filled with cumulus clouds.  
Sounds were a blur, but the numbness thawed from the chest until fingertips danced on the surface of the waves.  
Air felt like a luxury and burned better than any drink.  
The silence filled with the sounds of the water trying to reclaim what it had lost while the seagulls wailed. A low noise grew louder, sounding clearer as the sensation of firm arms became just as apparent.

“Damn it curly brow look at me. Say something- do anything. I need to know you’re alright.” The voice was strained and frantic but the blurred expression was even more so. That wouldn’t do.

“Since when does moss talk?” A weak smile paired with half-lidded orbs of blue was enough to make the once frantic expression turn into an annoyed look drenched in relief.

“Ever since a bloody nosed, two-bit chef was allowed to make every day of my life an annoyance. Now if you’re done playing the damsel in distress you need to hold on so I can get us both on the ship before it leaves without us.”

The salty flavor on his lips was mixed with the taste of iron, and his mind was too muddled to focus on what was happening. His arms held onto the swordsman the best he could as he felt the water moving. Soon the air clung to his skin and familiar voices surrounded him. The colors were blinding and the voices too many to focus on. He was on the lawn deck- the texture his fingers combed through a welcomed change from the water that once surrounded him. Only now did he feel the arm around his waist and the two hooves working on what he could only tell was an injury by the dull ache that was beginning to sting. 

“Chopper, is he going to be okay?”

The pain in his chest was enough to cause all the air to be sucked from his lungs. His mind was blank, giving room for memories to come crashing back. He remembered what happened. The morning had begun with bickering, but then those words became action. Things got out of control and one accident had him sinking to the bottom of the ocean.

“I never meant for this to happen.”

The pain that oozed from his chest was from a familiar sword- one that he never thought he would get a taste of. They argued and fought, but never had they hurt one another before. He could only guess what their captain was thinking.

“Damn it shitty cook I didn’t want this to happen. It’s my fault, okay? So stop looking at me as if you’re sorry.”

The blur of colors sharpened as his senses became tangible. His head was against the swordsman’s shoulder and his face tilted up to see the familiar green hair dripping saltwater. There was so much pain in that expression. “Since when do you worry?” His voice was hoarse but reassuring. He wanted to see the annoyed look on his face, but it never came.

“Since I hurt you, dumbass. I cut you.”

“You cut a lot of things.”

Zoro grumbled and gritted his teeth. “You were never meant to become one of them. I-” The breath was stolen from his lips as the ocean-drenched cook pressed his fingers to them.

“It’s okay. I’m okay.” A smile lingered on the blonde’s lips, his gaze soft and forgiving.

The swordsman delicately grasped the hand at his lips and let the gentle words break him down. The ocean’s salt mingled with the cool of his lips. “I’m sorry.” The words poured from his lips like the desperate flow of a current unable to change its course.

Emotions built themselves up and crept into his throat like a tidal wave of grief. “Hey. Stop that.” Desperate hands pinched his cheeks. “When have you ever apologized to me for anything that you’ve done.”

The guilt pained Zoro’s heart. Thoughts he had tried to forget flooded his entire being. He was in love with the idiot cook, and it took almost killing him with his own blade to realize it. At least he couldn’t get worse at flirting if this was where he was starting at.

“Zoro.”

The firm hands grasping his face and those blue eyes that pierced his very soul froze his thoughts from further shaming his volatile blonde. “Sanji-”

The cook was flustered at the sound of his name coming from his crewmates’ softened voice. “Look moss head I know it was an accident. I’m fine.” His thumb smoothed a path against Zoro’s cheek as his lips formed a gentle smile. “This won’t change my trust in you. So I got a paper cut from that dull sword of yours and decided to take a swim. So what? You pulled me out of the water’s grasp, didn’t you? That’s all that matters.” His hands fell from his face as he gripped the swordsman’s shoulder and pushed himself up on his feet against the doctor’s pleas. “I just need a few smokes and I’ll be better than ever.”

“Sanji-”

“I even thought of a meal while I was enjoying my dip.”

The thought of normalcy made him angry. How could things ever go back to normal after he had shed his blood- given him a scar that would last forever. He stood and grabbed the cook’s arm so he couldn’t walk away from this. “Sanji.”

“Stop.”

The words surprised him and he loosened his grip on the blonde. His confused expression prodded at the bandaged chef.

“You have never called me by my name before yet now you’re saying it as if it’s the very air you breathe. I don’t get it.”

“I thought I had killed you.”

“You didn’t.”

“How are you able to just walk away as if this didn’t happen?”

The cook sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose out of frustration. “I already accepted your apology, what else do you want from me? Do you want me to hold a grudge? Maybe shed a few tears? That isn’t me and you know it.”

His teeth gritted and he let go of his arm to avoid bruising him with his frustrated grip. “Just shut the hell up, you bastard. Go make lunch. I'm hungry from having to save your sorry ass.”

“Thank you.” Sanji huffed in relief. Finally, some normalcy. His heart couldn’t bear his name being uttered even once more. He escaped to the kitchen, the one place he didn’t have to be burdened with the butterflies that only an oaf could cause. However, the sound of his footsteps didn’t stop with him. He had been followed into the privacy of his kitchen.

“I’m not done yet.”

The cook sighed and looked at the meathead in exasperation. “Yes, you are.”

“Sanji, please.” His voice was calm and soothing, filling the blonde’s head with the butterflies that once dwelled in his stomach. “I have never regretted anything as much as I regret hurting you. Now you will carry a scar that I gave you for the rest of your life. You may be okay, but what happened is not. I do not let fear drown my courage, but when I grabbed you from the water I was terrified. I didn’t want to lose you.”

“I wonder who taught the troglodyte to speak big words.” Sanji brushed off the angry look Zoro glared at him and leaned against the counter with folded arms. “I don’t care if we have matching scars now, idiot. I’m a chef, so the only important thing is that my hands are fine. I can’t hold a grudge against you, Zoro. If you had been the one to get hurt I would have hated myself and I know you’re the same. I’m not going to give you the satisfaction of my anger, so you can use that as your own punishment if that helps you get over this. Just stop giving me that pained look already.” A calloused hand brushed the wet hair clinging to the cook’s forehead aside, weaving its digits through the salty softness. The beating of his heart pounded in his throat, seemingly echoing off the kitchen walls. Zoro wasn’t supposed to be gentle- he was a brute and always would be. Yet that didn’t stop him from admiring his faults.

The swordsman’s eyes searched for meaningful contact, content when his favorite color gazed upon him. He was certainly the best catch he had ever pulled from the waters below. A slow chuckle escaped his lips which left the cook flustered and glancing around for a cigarette.

It was barely a minute before a pack was found and the blonde was furiously trying to light his poison, desperate for a dose of nicotine to cure his ailments caused by the man hovering over him. The embers glowed and he inhaled only to have what was once between his lips replaced with a salty sweetness.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoy this one-shot I threw together :)


End file.
